1. Field of the Invention
Exemplary aspects of the present invention relate to a headrest of a vehicle to increase the comfort of a user during prolonged use.
2. Description of the Related Art
Seats of a vehicle such as an automobile are provided with a headrest for the safety and comfort of an occupant (user). The headrest provides protection to the occupant in the event of a crash by helping to prevent head, neck, or spinal injuries by limiting the rearward movement of the occupant's head. A headrest also provides comfort to a user by providing a place to rest one's head especially for a long drive.
Headrests may be provided in special arrangements to enhance the comfort of the user. For example, certain materials such as foam may be used to provide a soft cushion. Also, the shape of the headrest may be designed to enhance comfort. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 7,717,517 B2 describes a headrest that has side wings that pivot around fixed vertical shafts allowing the wings to rotate forward and backwards. However, U.S. Pat. No. 7,717,517 B2 has a drawback in that the side wings do not go all the way back, which does not give the appearance of a normal headrest when the side wings are not in use.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,144,083 B2 describes a headrest including a center portion and two side members. There are membrane hinges that attach the side members to the center portion and allow side members to pivot about the center portion. Further, U.S. Pat. No. 7,131,698 B2 describes a headrest that includes left and right side wings. The side wings are wedged shaped and are attached to center portion through a pivot. The wings can be adjusted to increase or decrease the amount of distance between the two side wings.
However, both U.S. Pat. No. 7,144,083 B2 and U.S. Pat. No. 7,131,698 B2 have a drawback in that the amount of area on the center portion where the head normally rests is greatly reduced when side members are rotated towards the user's head. Furthermore, creases in the headrest exist when the side members are flat and not rotated, which can cause discomfort to the user.